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Chargement... Open Fire (édition 2020)par Amber Lough (Auteur)
Information sur l'oeuvreOpen Fire par Amber Lough
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Listes notables
Historical Fiction.
Young Adult Fiction.
Young Adult Literature.
HTML: A dramatic page-turner that captures the devastating toll of war and the impact of women's struggles and solidarity, through the lens of a little-known slice of history. In 1917, Russia is losing the war with Germany, soldiers are deserting in droves, and food shortages on the home front are pushing people to the brink of revolution. Seventeen-year-old Katya is politically conflicted, but she wants Russia to win the war. Working at a munitions factory seems like the most she can do to serve her countryâ??until the government begins recruiting an all-female army battalion. Inspired, Katya enlists. Training with other brave women, she finds camaraderie and a deep sense of purpose. But when the women's battalion heads to the front, Katya has to confront the horrifying realities of war. Faced with heartbreak and disillusionment, she must reevaluate her commitment and decide where she stands. Aucune description trouvée dans une bibliothèque |
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Google Books — Chargement... GenresClassification décimale de Melvil (CDD)813.6Literature English (North America) American fiction 21st CenturyClassification de la Bibliothèque du CongrèsÉvaluationMoyenne:
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I don’t know much about early female military groups, or even much about the Russian front in basically any wars because of how the US school system always frames history, so I jumped at the chance to read a YA book starring the first female Russian battalion. I loved getting to learn about Katya and her complex relationships, her family history gets teased out chapter by chapter as we learn about her mother, father, brother, and best friend Masha. Her disagreements and ultimate understanding with her brother was beautiful as they both navigate the consequences of war and current political upheaval. Weaving through Katya’s story is a beautiful bedtime story about Saint Olga, told to Katya by her father years before all of the events that take place. Characterizing her father and visualizing her attachment to this saint in particular was a great way to add layers and emotions to both Katya and her absentee father who is, during the events of the book, stationed indefinitely on Russia’s warfront. The writing was captivating and seemingly well researched. I certainly learned a lot, and was sitting on the edge of my seat when the battalion ends up on the front lines!
Some other reviews have mentioned that the book falls a bit flat, which I can understand from the perspective of a ‘climax’ but I believe that is an essential, if not inherent, quality to a World War I novel. Yes, Katya trained extensively and didn’t accomplish much while on the battlefield; but that is the reality of what trench warfare was. It was a grueling, thankless, task of taking the opponent’s trenches that inevitably was lost again. It was an endless stalemate, and it’s hard to make trench warfare interesting. That all being said, I didn’t find this 'ending' to necessarily be about the setting, and more about how Katya started off the book trying to figure out who she was and if she would be brave or a coward when facing down death, and she found her answer. I found the climax to be this sudden understanding of the self, and it was quite beautiful.
I couldn’t rate this a full 4 or 5 stars because it felt like too much was being squished into the story by adding Sergei as a character. I understand that historically a lot was going on with the start of the Bolshevik revolution during this time period, but I think this lost a bit of my focus. I’m conflicted about whether I would have enjoyed it more if the Bolsheviks had been completely cut, or if their presence should have been more fully developed, but one of the two should have occurred. ( )